Relict
by theLibra
Summary: She introduced herself as Esther Pengrove. Then she said she was the Relict. And then she claimed to be a Time Lord. Can the Doctor believe her? If he does choose to believe her, what does it mean when she blames herself for Gallifrey's destruction? Will the two ever get along well enough to travel in the TARDIS together? AU, beginning during "Rose".
1. Improbable

**Doctor Who and associated rights and properties belong to the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC). Anything not belonging to the BBC is mine unless otherwise specified.**

* * *

"Go answer that, Rosie, it might be someone about your compensation!"

Rose Tyler groaned just as the knocking on the door repeated, more insistent this time. "Fine! But I don't wanna talk to anyone!"

She threw open the door, ready to give a proper tongue lashing to whoever was calling this early in the morning, but the curly-haired woman standing outside beat her to it.

"Hello, Rose Tyler? I'm doing an investigation on the explosion last night at the department store. Could I come in, please? I'd like to ask you some questions."

"Yeah, sure. Come on in." Rose's tone was less than hospitable, but the young woman at the door (seemingly about five years older than Rose), just smiled slightly, and Rose could have sworn that the look on her face was sympathy.

"She deserves at least five hundred pounds compensation!" Jackie Tyler yelled from the kitchen.

"Ms. Jacqueline Tyler, I assume? I assure you, I will do my best to see that your daughter gets as much compensation as possible. First, however, I need to ask Rose a few questions, all right?"

"You see that you do," Jackie said firmly. "Bit early for media calls, isn't it? And who are you, anyway?"

The woman dug in one of the pockets of her distinctly battered old-fashioned navy blue coat, pulling out a business-card-sized scrap of paper and holding it up. "Esther Pengrove, investigative reporter. Now, Miss Tyler, I wonder if we could perhaps sit down... on your couch?"

"Yeah, right. Um, so what was it you wanted to ask?" Rose flopped down on the couch, while Esther Pengrove sat carefully down with her back ramrod straight, as though expecting to have to jump up at any moment.

"This may seem like a rather strange question, but-"

"Would you like some coffee, Ms. Pengrove?" Jackie asked.

"Oh, that would be _stellar_! Just cream, if it's not too much trouble." Her thin face lit up with excitement completely disproportional to the offer. "Rose, last night in the store, before the explosion, did you meet someone else? Probably male, might have called himself the Doctor?"

"_Probably male_? What the hell do you mean by that?"

"Answer the question."

"Yeah, I did. What of it?"

"Did he make it out? Before the building exploded,_ did he make it out_?"

"I— I don't know. Honest!"

Jackie came in with the tea, handing one cup to her daughter and one cup to Esther. "Careful there, it's rather hot," she warned.

Rose set her cup down as Jackie went back into the bedroom, deeming it too hot to drink, but Esther took a large gulp immediately, then shuddered.

"Oh, my god, are you alright?" Rose asked frantically. "It's boilin' hot! Do you need water, or ice, or-"

"I'm fine! Calm down, girl!" Esther lowered her cup.

"Weird, yours must not be as hot as mine." Rose reached out a hand to feel the outside of Esther's cup and promptly snatched the hand back, looking at Esther in concern. "Are you-"

"Yes, I really am fine." There was a rattling sound from the direction of the door. Esther smiled. "He's here." She finally sank back onto the couch, relaxing.

Rose stood. "Mum, you are _such_ a liar. I told you to nail that cat flap down weeks ago. We're gonna get strays!"

"I did it weeks back," Jackie protested.

"No, you thought about it." The cat flap rattled again. Rose bent down to investigate, seeing the three nails scattered on the hallway carpet. She drew back as the flap rattled again, then crouched closer, slowly opening the flap to see a man's face.

She jumped up and opened the door.

"What are you doing here?" The man asked, as if it wasn't perfectly obvious.

"I live here," Rose answered, as if it _was_ perfectly obvious (which it was).

"Well what d'you do that for?" he returned.

"'Cause I do! I'm only at home because someone blew up my job!"

He pulled something out of his pocket that buzzed and gave off a blue light. "Must have got the wrong signal. You're not plastic, are you? Nope. Bonehead. 'Bye then!"

He turned to leave, but she grabbed his arm and pulled him inside. "You. Inside. Right now. You're the second person who's come knocking on my door this morning, and it's not even eight o'clock!"

"Who is it now?" Jackie called.

"It's about last night. It's another part of the inquiry. Give us ten more minutes."

"She deserves compensation," she said again.

"Oh, we're talking millions," the Doctor assured her.

Jackie stood up, smiling dreamily. "I'm in my dressing gown.

"Yes, you are."

"There's a strange man in my bedroom."

"Yes, there is."

"Well, anything could happen."

"Oi, you didn't say that when I came in!" Esther called.

The Doctor looked at Jackie and shook his head. "No."

Rose cleared a pile of papers off a chair. "Don't mind the mess. D'you want a coffee?"

"Might as well, thanks. Just milk."

The Doctor walked to the coffee table, completely ignoring Esther, and picked up a magazine as Rose prattled on about going to the police. "Hmm, that won't last: he's gay, and she's an alien." He picked up a book and paged through it rapidly, then picked up a letter. "Sad ending. Oh, Rose Tyler."

He peered into the small wall mirror, studying his appearance. "Hmm, could have been worse."

"Only just. Look at the ears!" The Doctor jumped, whirling around. "Though I must say I'm pleased with myself. Lots of hair, and it's sort of grayish blond, and the nose really could have been less narrow, but overall I don't mind." the woman said, looking in the mirror as well.

"Who are you? And what do you mean, only just?"

"I mean that it's really not the best, as faces go. I'm sure you've had better. You can call me Esther Pengrove, for now. Pleased to meet you, Doctor."

They shook hands, the Doctor still confused. "Yes, but-" Something rattled from the other side of the room. "What's that, then?" He walked over to investigate.

"You didn't get the signal wrong," Esther told him, following.

"You got a cat?" he asked Rose.

"No."

A plastic arm shot out from behind the couch, grabbing him 'round the neck. Rose kept babbling, oblivious, as the Doctor stumbled around the living room with Esther trying to get close enough to help him.

Rose came in, seeing the Doctor and Esther struggling with the hand, and said, "I told Mickey to chuck that thing out. All the same. Give a man a plastic hand... And I don't even know your name. Doctor— what was it?"

The Doctor finally managed to wrench the arm off himself. Esther dove to the side, wary of the plastic, so the hand turned in midair to clamp over Rose's face. The Doctor lunged after it, and the two crashed through the coffee table together as Esther stumbled back to her feet, pulling something out of her pocket, pointing it at the hand, and then jiggling it frustratedly.

The Doctor pulled out the same metal thing from earlier, clicking it repeatedly and pointing it at the hand, which eventually stopped twitching.

"'S'alright, I've stopped it. There you go, see? 'Armless!"

"D'you think?" Rose, breathing hard, whacked him with it.

"Ow!" He got up and dashed out the door and down the stairs, Rose and Esther following.

"Hold on a minute, you can't just go swanning off!"

"Oh, Rose." Esther sighed. "Yes, he can. He's the king of swanning off."

"Yeah! This is me, swanning off. See ya!" the Doctor agreed.

"But that arm was moving! It tried to kill me!" Rose protested.

"Ten out of ten for observation."

"You can't just walk away! That's not fair! You've got to tell me what's going on!"

"No, I haven't."

"All right then. I'll go to the police. I'll tell everyone. You said, if I did that I'd get people killed. So. Your choice. Tell me, or I'll start talking."

Esther muttered something that sounded suspiciously like "stupid human girl".

"Is that supposed to sound tough?" The Doctor asked Rose.

"Sort of."

"Doesn't work."

"Who _are_ you?" Rose asked the Doctor.

"Told you: the Doctor."

"Yeah, but... Doctor what?"

"Just the Doctor."

"The Doctor," she said disbelievingly.

"Hello!" he gave a little wave.

"Yes, and I'm the Relict. Not actually Esther Pengrove, sorry; that's just a pseudonym. Mostly. Well, maybe half."

The Doctor looked at her with a small frown as Rose asked, "What sort of name is that?"

"Mine. Not my original one, but my real one. Don't let it bother your tiny human brain, though."

"You calling me stupid?"

"No, I'm just calling you human. Which you are. It's your choice whether to take offense or not."

"Is that supposed to sound impressive? Your names, I mean."

"Sort of," The Doctor and the Relict answered in unison.

"Hold on, you can tell me. I've seen enough. Are you the police?"

"No, I'm just... passing through. I'm a long way from home," the Doctor answered.

"Aye, you can say that again," the Relict agreed sadly. "I'm a bit stuck here though, personally. Lost my... method of transportation. Crashed it, really."

"What have I done wrong?" Rose asked. "How come these plastic things keep coming after me?"

"Oh, suddenly the entire world revolves around you! You were just an accident. You got in the way, that's all." The Doctor told her condescendingly.

"It tried to kill me!"

"It was after me, not you! Last night, in the shop, you blundered in, almost ruined the whole thing; this morning, I was tracking it down, it was tracking me down, the only reason it fixed on you was because you'd met me."

"So what you're saying is... the entire world revolves around you."

"Actually, no," the Relict cut in. "Well, it is what he's saying, but the theory has several holes in it. They wouldn't be able to find you just because you'd met him. It was scanning for a very specific set of vital signs, only instead of finding him it found me, and I was at your house. Hence it attacked you."

"So the whole world revolves around _you_?"

"Don't be stupid, this world revolves around its sun. But the world might be... _focused_ around me." She smirked.

"You're both full of it."

"Sort of, yeah," they responded, again in unison.

"Hold on, though." The Doctor stopped, putting out his arms to stop the others as well. "Esther, Relict, whatever your name is— you said they were scanning for a certain set of vital signs..."

"Yes; binary vascular system."

The Doctor turned slightly pale.

"Bi- _what_ system?" Rose asked.

The Relict turned to her. "Hush, Rose Tyler. The Doctor is on the verge of a breakthrough that may well change the remainder of his life."

"What species are you?" The Doctor asked quietly.

"Unless he decides to deny the evidence," she said pointedly. _He shouldn't even need to ask_. The Relict held up one finger, a tiny spark of golden light dancing at the tip.

"Impossible."

The flame went out. "Improbable in the extreme," she corrected.

"I don't believe you."

"I'll prove it later, if that wasn't proof enough for you. I think Rose has another question for us."

"What the hell are you two on about?"

"You wouldn't understand."

"What, because I'm _human_?"

"Basically."

Rose started to open her mouth. "No more! This subject is closed for the time being."

"Fine." She turned to the Doctor. "So all this plastic stuff, who else knows about it?"

"No one."

"What, you're on your own?"

"Well, who else is there? I mean, you lot, all you do is eat chips, go to bed, and watch telly. While all the time, beneath you, there's a war going on."

The Relict crossed her arms and scowled.

Rose grabbed the arm back from the Doctor. "Hey! Start from the beginning. I mean, if we're gonna go with the living plastic- and I don't even believe that, but- if we do, how did you kill it?"

"The thing controlling it projects life into the arm. I cut off the signal. Dead."

"So that's radio control."

"Thought control," the Relict said sharply. "Don't be narrow-minded."

"Sorry about her," the Doctor said. "You all right?"

"Sorry about me? Is _she_ all right? You should be apologizing to _me_ about _her_! Doctor! Fine, if you're going to choose her over me, could you please at least accept who I am before you do it?"

"No."

"You're afraid to hope."

"Shut up."

"Um, guys..." They both turned toward Rose, obviously annoyed. The human girl shrunk back a bit. "Um, you said this discussion was closed for the time being? So who's controlling the plastic?"

"Long story," the Doctor responded shortly as they continued walking.

"But what's it all for? I mean, shop window dummies? What's that about? Is someone trying to take over Britain's shops?"

He laughed a bit. "No. They want to overthrow the human race and destroy you. Do you believe me?"

"No."

"But you're still listening."

She fell silent for a few seconds, thinking. "Really though, Doctor. Tell me: who are you?"

He and the Relict had walked ahead of Rose at this point, but the Doctor turned back. "You know like we were saying? About the Earth revolving?" He walked back towards her. "It's like when you're a kid: the first time they tell you that the world's turning, and you just can't quite believe it, because everything looks like it's standing still. I can feel it." He took her hand. "The turn of the Earth. The ground beneath our feet spinning at a thousand miles per hour. The entire planet is hurtling around the sun at sixty seven thousand miles per hour, and I can feel it. We're falling through space, you and me. Clinging to the skin of this tiny little world and if we let go…" He dropped her hand.

The Relict took over, her voice merging near-seamlessly with his, despite the differences in pitch and accent. "And I can see the threads of Time: everything that ever happened, or could have happened, what is happening now, what could happen in the future; the turning points, the places that cannot or must not be changed, the places that are fluctuating and being changed, and events that will change the entire course of the future."

Now she took the Doctor's hand in her own. "That is who we are." The two shared a long look, almost nose-to-nose, before the Doctor scowled and pulled away from her.

The Doctor turned to Rose. "Forget me, Rose Tyler. Go home." He picked up the plastic arm and walked off.

"Oi!" the Relict called after him. "I'm sticking with you until you believe me!" She ran to catch up with him.

As Rose walked away, she heard a strange grinding noise and ran back, only to have the noise cut off rather abruptly after a few seconds, leaving no trace of the Doctor, the Relict, or the blue box that had been sitting in the empty parking lot.

* * *

**Author's note: I am aware that the idea of there being another living Time Lord is hardly original, and that the episode "Rose" is hardly an original place for it to begin. However, I do hope that anyone reading my story enjoys it, and I'd like you to know that I will endeavor to make it as original as possible under the circumstances.**

**Please notify me as to any spelling, punctuation, or grammar errors there may be. They were not my wondrful editor's fault, but rather my own.**

**This story will not see the Doctor involved in any romance, either with Rose or the Relict, and I will be changing the end of season two up a bit... but you'll see that when you get there. I will try to stay fairly neutral on the topic of Rose in this story, though personally she isn't my favorite.**

**I will not be transcribing every episode of the show, as it takes me far too long and is relatively pointless to the development of my story if there isn't something important I have to add to the episode. I am proud to admit, however, that I will be adding some original adventures to this story at some point.**

**I'm glad you saw fit to give this a chance.**


	2. Penultimate

**Doctor Who and associated rights and properties belong to the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC). Anything not belonging to the BBC is mine unless otherwise specified.**

* * *

Rose went back to Mickey's flat then, accepting his offer of coffee in a preoccupied manner and heading straight for the computer. She input 'Doctor' to the search bar, but only came up with physician's groups and medical doctors, so she tried again.

'Doctor Living Plastic' was next. Nothing but ads and promotions for doctors who had created seemingly living plastic.

'Doctor Blue Box', she typed. Bingo. She clicked the link, finding a picture of him, the same man. So much for forgetting about him.

Rose e-mailed the man who had set up the website.

* * *

"You're not coming in!" she told Mickey again. "He's safe. He's got a wife and kids."

"Yeah? Who told you that? He did. That's exactly what an internet lunatic murderer would say!"

Rose ignored him, going over to knock on the man's door, which was answered by a young boy.

"Hello, I've come to see Clive? We've been e-mailing."

"Dad! It's one of your nutters!" The boy called.

A largish, kind-looking man emerged from one of the side rooms. "Oh. Sorry. Hello. You must be Rose. I'm Clive. Obviously."

"I'd better tell you now, my boyfriend's waiting in the car, just in case you're gonna kill me," She warned jokingly.

"Ah, no, good point. No murders." He waved to Mickey.

A woman's voice came from further inside the house. "Who is it?"

"Oh, It's, eh, something to do with the Doctor. She's been reading the website. Please come through; I'm in the shed."

The woman came down the stairs with a full laundry basket to close the door. "She? She read a website about the Doctor? She's a she?"

In the shed, Clive pulled out some photographs. "A lot of this stuff's quite sensitive; I couldn't just send it to you. People might intercept it, if you know what I mean. If you dig deep enough, keep a lively mind, this Doctor keeps cropping up all over the place: political diaries, conspiracy theories, even ghost stories. No first name, no last name, just 'the Doctor'. Always 'the Doctor'. And the title seems to be passed down from father to son; it appears to be an inheritance. That's your Doctor there, isn't it?"

He pointed to the screen.

"Yeah."

"I tracked it down to the Washington Public archive, just last year. The online photo's enhanced, but if you look at the original-" he pointed, then showed her a series of photos zooming out to reveal the setting. "November the twenty-second, nineteen sixty-three. The assassination of President Kennedy. See?"

"Must be his father."

"Going further back, April nineteen twelve. This is a photograph of the Daniels family of Southampton. And friend. This was taken the day before they were due to sail for the new world, on the _Titanic_. And for some unknown reason they canceled the trip and survived. And- here we are: eighteen eighty-three. Another Doctor. The same lineage. He's identical. This one washed up on the coast of Sumatra, on the very night that Krakatau exploded. The Doctor is a legend woven throughout history. When disaster comes, he's there. He brings a storm in his wake, and he has one constant companion."

"Who's that?"

"Death."

"But- Who is he? Who do you think he is?"

"I think he's the same man. I think he's immortal. I think he can change his appearance to suit his preference, because there are at least ten other men called 'the Doctor', scattered throughout history as he is. I think he's an alien from another world."

* * *

Rose was talking at dinner that night about job options when Mickey, rather rudely, changed the subject. "So where did you meet this Doctor?"

The woman sitting at the next table folded up her menu and raised it above her head like a signal.

"Oh, I'm sorry, was I talking about me for a second?" Rose asked sarcastically.

"'Cause I reckon it all started back at the shop, am I right? Was he something to do with that?"

"No," she lied.

"Come on..."

"Sort of." Yes, he had everything to do with it.

"What was he doing there?"

"I'm not going on about him, Mickey, really I'm not. 'Cause, I know it sounds daft, but... I don't think he's safe. Him or that woman. They're _dangerous_."

The woman at the next table, listening to their conversation, grimaced, because it was all too true. "I'm sorry," she whispered to thin air for no apparent reason.

"But you can trust me, sweetheart- babe- hun- sugar- babe- sugar." Mickey's voice fluctuated oddly with each term, the woman at the next table looking around urgently. "You can tell me anything. Tell me about the Doctor and what he's planning and I can help you, Rose. 'Cause that's all I really want to do, sweetheart- sugar- hun- babe- babe- sugar- sweetheart."

"What are you doing that for?"

Somebody moved next to their table and proffered a bottle. "Your champagne."

Without looking up, Mickey dismissed him. "We didn't order any champagne. Where's the Doctor?" He grabbed Rose's hand roughly.

"Madam, your champagne," the person insisted.

"It's not ours," Rose insisted. "Mickey, what is it? What's wrong?"

"I need to find out how much he knows, so where is he?"

"Doesn't anybody want this champagne?"

Mickey looked up. "Look. We didn't order a-" He stopped talking, and Rose looked round to see the Doctor shaking up the champagne bottle as Mickey said, "Ah, got ya."

The Doctor grinned. "Don't mind me. I'm just toasting the happy couple. On the house!" He aimed the bottle at Mickey and pulled of the top.

With a resonant _pop_, the cork flew straight towards Rose's boyfriend… and went _into_ his forehead.

Contorting his face, Mickey pulled the cork into his mouth and spat it out as Rose looked on, uncomprehending.

Mickey grinned slightly. "Anyway…" He stood up and his hand turned into a wedge-shaped plastic club, which smashed down on the table. The woman from the next table, the only one of the customers not in shock, grabbed Rose's hand and pulled her to the exit.

The Doctor struggled with the thing that wasn't Mickey, grabbing his head and eventually pulling it off, eliciting more screams from the diners.

In the Doctor's hands, the plastic head opened its eyes and said, "Don't think that's gonna stop me!"

The body got up and kept rampaging. Rose, showing a bit of common sense, hit the fire alarm. "Everyone out! Out now!"

The three of them—Rose, the Doctor, and the Relict—ran for the kitchens, still yelling for everybody to get out.

The Doctor slammed the metal door shut behind them and sealed it with the sonic, Rose running for the gate**,** and the Relict dashing to the blue police box parked in the middle of the small courtyard and laying a hand on the door.

"Open the gate!" Rose yelled, panicked. "Use that tube thing, come on!"

"Sonic screwdriver," the Doctor proclaimed, sauntering unhurriedly over to the box.

"Use it!"

"Nah. Why don't we just—" he gestured to the blue box and then stopped abruptly. "What- how did you- but-" The door was open, the Relict leaning in the doorway casually.

She smirked. "All I had to do was ask politely, you know. By the way, you should talk to her more often. She's been lonely since… she's just as lonely as you are," she revised.

Scowling, the Doctor pushed her in and stepped inside as Rose ran back over. "We can't hide inside a wooden box!" She ran back over to the gate, yanking at the padlock and chain. "Doctor, he's gonna get us! Doctor!"

"Aren't you coming?" the Relict called.

Finally, she sprinted back to the box and stepped inside, closing the door behind her and whirling.

There was a moment of silence, then Rose turned and practically threw herself out of the box. The Doctor and the Relict shared a look, she rolling her eyes. "Primitives. Do we really have time for this?"

"They're not primitives!" the Doctor defended. "This is very advanced science!"

"It's just a bit of transdimensional engineering. Kid stuff!" She caught his look. "Okay, so you were about eighty when you learned this; I did a research project on it when I was eighteen. Times change!"

He was just about to ask an incredulous question when Rose reappeared.

"It's gonna follow us!"

"The assembled hordes of Genghis Kahn couldn't get through those doors," the Doctor boasted, walking around the console with the plastic head in one hand and his sonic in the other. "And believe me, they've tried. Now, shut up a minute."

"It's a type 40! It was a museum piece when _you_ were growing up," the Relict snorted.

"Are you insinuating that I'm old?"

"I'm older than you! I was just born later."

"How does that work?" Rose questioned quietly.

"I thought I told you two to shut up."

"Oh, so it's okay when she talks, but not me?" Rose muttered, indignant.

There was a moment of silence, in which Rose continued to look around and the Relict lean**ed** on the console, watching the Doctor work.

"You see, the arm was too simple," the Doctor explained. "But the head's perfect. I can use it to trace the signal back to the original source. Right." He finally turned to the human girl. "Where do you want to start?"

"Um… the inside's bigger than the outside…"

"Yes."

"It's alien."

"Yeah."

"Are you alien?"

"Yes."

"Both of you?"

The Doctor glanced back to where the Relict still leaned on the console. "Apparently. Is that alright?"

"Yeah."

"It's called the TARDIS, this thing. T-A-R-D-I-S. That's 'Time And Relative Dimension In Space'."

Rose sniffled, putting a hand to her face, and the Relict snorted, an action which seemed quite practiced for her.

"It's okay. Culture shock. Happens to the best of us."

"Did they kill him? Mickey? Did they kill Mickey, is he dead?"

"Oh. I didn't think of that."

"He's my _boyfriend_! You pulled of his head- they copied him and you didn't even think- and now you're just gonna let him melt?"

"Melt?" The Doctor ran back to the console as the plastic head did just that. "Ah, no, no, no, no, no!"

"Ah, the benefit of explanations," the Relict said sarcastically.

"What are you doing?" Rose asked at the same time.

"Following the signal; it's fading! No, no, no, no, no!" he shouted again. "It's all right. Almost there. Almost there! Here we go!"

The two aliens rushed out the door.

"You can't go out there, it's not safe!" Rose yelled, then followed.

"I lost the signal," the Doctor fumed. "I got so close!"

"We've moved! Does it fly?"

"Disappears there and reappears here." He leaned against the railing as the Relict smirked. "You wouldn't understand."

"But if we're somewhere else, what about that headless thing? It's still on the loose."

"Melted with the head; are you gonna witter on all night?"

"I'll have to tell his mother," Rose said quietly.

The Doctor turned to look at her in confusion, but for the first time that night the Relict's face held a hint of pity and sympathy.

"Mickey! I'll have to tell his mother he's dead, and you just went and forgot him, again! You were right, you are alien."

"Look, if I did forget some kid called Mickey-"

"He's not a kid-"

"It's because I'm busy trying to save the life of every _stupid ape_ blundering around on top of this planet, alright?"

"Alright?"

"Yes! It is!"

He made to turn away, but the Relict grabbed the collar of his jacket, pulled him back, and slapped him. "It is very well not all right," she hissed. "Just because the future of the human race hangs in the balance does not authorize you to dismiss anybody as unimportant. I thought you were different than them. You may not go strutting around in robes and those ridiculous collars, but you've still got your nose too high in the air to care about anything!"

"I am not like them! At least I'm trying!"

"Is it for yourself, though? Because you can't stand the guilt of letting another planet die? Because it should be- I thought it _had_ been, for you- out of compassion, not just because you wanted to even out your own bloody conscience!" She slapped him again and then whirled to Rose, who backed up a few steps. "There's a possibility that your Mickey's still alive, dear," she said comfortingly with a complete change of tone and attitude.

The Doctor stood, shoulders hunched as if to protect himself from further slaps. "I really am trying, though. That's more'n they ever did."

"I'm sorry, but you need to stop sulking- yes, I know you have every right to be, but do you see me curling up on the ground and crying as would be perfectly justifiable right now? **Y**ou need to stop sulking and pay attention to the planets and people that are still left to save."

"I'm not sulking!" he said petulantly.

"You tell me that in that tone and expect me to believe it?" she cracked a smile.

"Oh, shut up."

"Hold on," Rose spoke up. "If you're aliens, how come you sound like you**'**re from the North," she pointed at the Doctor and the Relict in turn, "And you sound like you're from a really posh family?"

"Lots of planets have a north," the Doctor said at the same time the Relict answered, a bit boastfully,

"Because I _am_."

"And… what's a 'Police Public Call Box'?"

"It's a telephone box. From the nineteen fifties. It's a disguise."

"It's _supposed_ to be a disguise," the Relict corrected. "Broken chameleon circuit?"

Rose shook her head. "Okay. And this— this living plastic, what's it got against us?"

"Nothing. It loves you. You've got such a good planet: lots of smoke and oil, plenty of toxins and dioxins in the air… perfect. Just what the Nestene Consciousness needs. Its food stock was destroyed in the war, all its protein planets rotted, so Earth: dinner!"

"Any way of stopping it?"

He pulled a clear vial filled with blue liquid from his pocket. "Anti-plastic."

"Anti-plastic?"

"Anti-plastic. But first I've got to find it. How can you hide something that big in a city this small?"

"Hold on, hide what?"

"The transmitter. The Consciousness is controlling every single piece of plastic, so it needs a transmitter to boost the signal."

"What's it look like?"

"Like a _transmitter_. Round and massive. Somewhere slap-bang in the middle of London. A huge metal circular structure. Like a dish, like a wheel. Must be completely invisible."

The Relict was smirking all throughout the latter part of his speech, and at the end Rose suddenly joined in too.

"What?"

Rose raised her eyebrows at him pointedly. He glanced around briefly, oblivious, and when he looked back the Relict was struggling to keep from bursting into laughter**,** and Rose still had a knowing look on her face.

"What?" He looked again. "What is it? What?" He looked a third time and comprehension dawned on his face. "Oh! Fantastic!"

They ran off across the bridge, the Relict sprinting ahead and the other two grabbing hands as they ran.

"Think of it. Plastic, all across the world. Every artificial thing, waiting to come alive. The shop window dummies, the phones, the wires, the cables…

"The breast implants…"

"Still, we've found the transmitter. The Consciousness must be somewhere underneath."

"Got it!" the Relict called up to them. "Down here!"

"Looks good to me!"

The aliens went down the manhole first, Rose following.

They emerged from a rather gloomy tunnel into a large, industrial-looking room.

"The Nestene Consciousness. That's it, inside the vat. A living plastic creature," the Doctor explained.

"Well then, tip in your anti-plastic and let's go."

The Relict gave the Doctor a searching, evaluating look. He met her eyes with an almost imperceptible nod. "I'm not here to kill it. I've got to give it a chance."

She squeezed his shoulder in approval and followed him down to the catwalk overlooking the vat.

As she looked down on the vat of plastic, the Relict muttered something that sounded suspiciously like '_cast it into the fires of Mount Doom_'.

"I seek audience with the Nestene Consciousness under peaceful contract. According to convention fifteen of the Shadow Proclamation."

The glowing mass shifted and hissed.

"Thank you. If we might have permission to approach?"

"Oh, my god!" Rose broke away and ran down the steps as she saw her boyfriend. "Mickey! It's me! It's okay! It's all right, it's all right."

"That thing, down there. The liquid, Rose, it can talk!"

"You're stinking! Relict, they kept him alive!"

"Yeah, that was always a possibility," the Doctor said. "Keep him alive to maintain the copy."

"You knew that, and you never said? You just led me on until the Relict had the decency to tell me that?"

"Keep the domestics outside, thank you?"

The Relict growled but stayed with the Doctor as he descended yet another level.

"Am I addressing the Consciousness?" It hissed again and piled itself up to be closer to their level. "Thank you. If I might observe, you infiltrated this civilization by means of warp-shunt technology. So, may I suggest with the greatest respect that you _shunt_ off?"

"As if," the Relict muttered as the Consciousness responded.

"Oh, don't give me that! It was an invasion, plain and simple! Don't talk about constitutional rights!" It writhed in its pit as though angry. "_I am talking_!" The Doctor yelled over it. "This planet is just starting; these stupid little people have only just learnt how to walk but they're capable of so much more! I am asking you on their behalf: please, just go."

"Doctor!" The two women warned simultaneously.

"Get your filthy artificial fingers off me!" the Relict yelled.

Two of the dummies had grabbed her, and another pair pulled the Doctor back from the edge of their platform, one of them pulling the vial of anti-plastic from his top pocket.

"It was just insurance; I wasn't going to use it! I was _not_ attacking you, we're here to help; we're not your enemies. I swear, we're not!"

The Consciousness reared and a door on Rose's level slid open. "What are you doing? No, oh, no! Honestly, no! Yes, that's my ship. That's not true! I should know, I was there! I fought in the war; it wasn't my fault! I couldn't save your world, I couldn't save any of them!"

"What's it doing?" Rose asked frantically.

"It's the TARDIS. The Nestene has identified it as superior technology! It's turning on! It's going to the final phase! It's starting the invasion! Get out, Rose, just leg it! Now!"

As Rose answered her phone, a plastic head went flying down into the body of the Consciousness.

"It's not his ship!" the Relict screamed, struggling forward as one of the dummies that had been holding her, now headless, teetered and fell off the edge of the platform. "It's my ship! He doesn't even know how to fly it! It's not his fault your planet was destroyed, it's mine! Let them go, now! Your quarrel is with me and me alone, because I'm the one who did it, not him! Not the humans! Me! I am the last of the Time Lords, and _I ended the Time War_!"

The Doctor turned to look at her, the Consciousness hissed loudly, and Rose yelled over the phone at her mum, oblivious.

"So come and get me, you stupid, filthy mess of plastic! Come take your revenge!"

Still struggling with her remaining dummy, the Relict pulled something long and thin out of her coat pocket and waved it at the dummy holding the Doctor. A pulse of dark orange energy collided with the dummy, and, almost like a magic spell, the dummy dropped like a marionette with cut strings.

"Go save the world!" she yelled, stuffing the wand-like thing back in her pocket and raising her hands to keep her own dummy's arm off her throat.

He stared at her, dumbfounded, until a bolt of electric-blue light jumped to the ceiling. "It's transmitting," he shouted. "And I'm not leaving without you!"

"I don't matter! The planet does! Get out, idiot! Just get Rose and run!"

"I can't leave you!" He looked around, searching for any way to destroy the plastic. "You were just talking about everybody mattering! If I leave you here, you die!"

"Maybe not**.**"

The Doctor gawped at her. "Nobody could survive being thrown into a vat of molten plastic!"

"I was giving you a chance to believe otherwise, you know. You could take it."

"I'm not-"

"Does it matter?"

"Doctor, Relict, the stairs are gone!" Rose shouted, breaking the tense moment between the two nonhumans.

"Get to the TARDIS, the three of you! Go!"

"Doctor, I haven't got the key!"

He looked, conflicted, between the TARDIS and the Relict, but the decision was made for him when another dummy appeared, grabbing him by the arms again.

"We're gonna die," Mickey said.

"_Time Lords,_" the Consciousness hissed.

"That's me," the Relict acknowledged, ignoring the plurality that the Consciousness had used.

The Doctor looked back at Rose as Mickey clung to her leg like an overgrown child.

"Just leave them!" Mickey whined.

Coming to a decision, Rose tore away from her boyfriend.

"There's nothing you can do!"

Rose lifted an axe off the wall. "I've got no A-levels, no job, no future. But I'll tell you what I have got: Jericho Street Junior School Under 7's gymnastics team. I got bronze."

She swung out on the chain she had loosed with the axe, smacking with impeccable aim into first the dummy that held the Doctor, then the one with the anti-plastic, knocking it back into the pit of the Nestene Consciousness.

The Doctor immediately pulled out his sonic screwdriver, cutting off the signal to the dummy holding the Relict, and then returned it to his pocket in time to catch Rose as she swung back past him. He grinned. "Now we're in trouble."

The three ran for the TARDIS as the Consciousness screeched and the building started to explode.

They hurried in, pushing Mickey ahead and then rushing past him as he flattened himself to the door, a look of abject terror on his face.

The Relict sat down promptly, cross-legged with her back against the console, pulling fistfuls of her long wool frock coat around her body and letting her head hang forward so that her hair fell in a tangled mask over her face. She didn't flinch as the Doctor danced around the console, trying not to step on her, nor did she make any move to leave when they landed again and the other three exited the TARDIS.

"Nestene Consciousness?" The Doctor snapped his fingers, speaking to Rose from the TARDIS doorway. "Easy."

"You were useless in there, you'd be dead if it wasn't for me."

"Yes, I would. And the Relict would be dead if it wasn't for both of us. We make a good team. Thank you. Right then! We'll be off. Unless you'd like to… I dunno… you could come with us? This box isn't just a London hopper, you know, it goes anywhere in the universe. Free of charge."

"Don't!" Mickey insisted shakily. "He's an alien, and she's a thing!" The Relict still didn't move, though she could hear every word spoken.

"He's _not_ invited," the Doctor said pointedly. "What do you think? You could stay here; fill your life with work and food and sleep, or you could go… anywhere."

"Is it always this dangerous?"

"Yeah."

Mickey, still mostly on the ground, wrapped his arms around her hips.

"Yeah, I can't. I've, um… I've gotta go and find my mum, and… someone's gotta look after this stupid lump, so…"

"Okay. See you around."

"Doctor! There's no need to sound so disappointed, I mean… you've still got the Relict, yeah?"

"He's afraid of me." The Doctor jumped violently, not having realized that she was standing directly behind him. "He's scared of what I am and the things he'll remember every time he looks at me. And for good reason." She disappeared again.

"Hey, it's not-"

"Don't lie!"

He turned back to Rose. "Sorry," he said with a tight smile, then retreated into his blue box and shut the doors behind him.

She was standing at the console with her back towards him. "Thanks for that, back with the Consciousness. You didn't need to… you know."

"I gave you an opportunity and you didn't take it," she said accusingly. "You _wasted_ it."

"I never asked you to lie for me."

"The only lie I told was the part about being the last of the Time Lords. 'Penultimate' doesn't sound quite as impressive."

"But you're _not_ a Time Lord at all!" the Doctor said, frustrated.

"Why? Because you can't _sense_ me? That's it, isn't it. All this time, and that was all I needed to do." She passed a hand over her face, as though removing a curtain, and he could instantly feel her: the brush of another, and undoubtedly Time Lord, mind against his.

He gaped at her again. "But— what the— how-"

"Basic telepathic defense, first year: how to shield your presence from others. Not a class they had in your time, so I can hardly blame you for your ignorance."

"All the other stuff you said…"

She shot him a glare that was icy cold and deeply unsettling (if looks could kill…). The Doctor had been told before that he had **"**old eyes**"**, but he had never realized quite what people meant: they were his own eyes, after all. Now he realized what that meant and the power that could be held within them.

He snapped his mouth shut on the question he had been about to ask. "Sorry."

"No, no, I'm sorry. Look, could we just go somewhere to relax? Sixtieth **C**entury, maybe, during the fourth revival of the printed word?"

The Doctor's face lit up. "Time travel! I forgot to mention time travel! How could I have forgotten that?"

The TARDIS jerked and landed, only a few seconds by relative time after they had left Rose.

He bounded to the doors and threw them open. "By the way, did I mention: it also travels in time."

A few seconds later, the human girl was barrelling into the TARDIS with an ecstatic grin on her face. The Relict sighed, half out of annoyance and half… out of relief. Maybe it was good to have someone a little more… careless… carefree… light-hearted… no. Innocent. It was _relieving_ to have someone innocent on board.

* * *

**End of "Rose", then. I'll admit that I'm not as pleased with these first two chapters as I could be, but I think I can promise that later chapters will be better written, at least in most places.**

**I wouldn't say no to some reviews, either. Any feedback and/or constructive criticism you may have is always welcome.**


	3. Three Words

**Doctor Who and associated rights and properties belong to the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC). Anything not belonging to the BBC is mine unless otherwise specified.**

* * *

"Right then, Rose Tyler, you tell me: where do you want to go? Backwards or forwards in time? I've already had a request for forwards form the Relict, but don't let that influence your decision. It's your choice. What's it gonna be?"

"Forwards is fine with me."

"How far?"

"One hundred years."

"There you go: step outside those doors to the twenty-second century."

"You're kidding."

"That's boring, though," the Relict contributed playfully. "Why only go a hundred years in your future? You'll almost live that long! Don't you want to go further?"

"Fine by me."

"Ten thousand years in the future." He pointed. "Step outside, it's the year twelve thousand and five. The New Roman Empire."

"You think you're so impressive."

"Yeah, he does, doesn't he? Ten thousand years? You can do better than that!"

"Right. You're both asking for it. I know exactly where to go. Hold on!" He spun the dial on the console forwards.

"I know exactly where you're taking us…" the Relict teased.

"Bet you don't!"

"Bet I do!"

"Take a guess, then."

The TARDIS materialized, and the Relict pulled open the doors with a flourish. "Welcome to the end of the world."

The Doctor huffed in annoyance. "Now that- that just isn't fair."

The Relict turned to Rose and said in an undertone, "When men- even Time Lords- want to impress somebody, they usually get hopelessly predictable."

"Oi! I heard that!"

"You know, I think you were meant to, mate," Rose said through her giggles.

A large panel on the wall slid down, revealing a window, and the Doctor walked over to join the two women.

"You lot-" he nudged Rose- "You spend all your time thinkin' about dying. Like you're gonna get killed by eggs, or beef, or global warming, or asteroids. But you never take time to imagine the impossible: that maybe you survive." He turned to the Relict. "That maybe, just maybe, there are others out there like you who're in the same position as you are. That maybe your species isn't going to die when you do, but will live on, possibly for thousands of years more."

He shook his head and turned back to the window. "This is the year five point five slash apple slash twenty-six. Five billion years in your future. And this is the day- hold on," he checked his watch.

Outside the window, the sun flared a brilliant white, growing to several times its original size. "This is the day the sun expands."

As they made their way to the main viewing deck, a cool, female voice clicked into existence over the PA system. "Shuttles five and six now docking. Guests are reminded that Platform One forbids the use of weapons, teleportation, and religion."

The Relict smirked, grinning. "Forbids the _use_ of religion."

"Earth-death is scheduled for fifteen forty-nine, followed by drinks in the Manchester suite."

"So when it says guests, does that mean people?" Rose asked.

"Depends what you mean by people," answered the Doctor.

"I mean _people_. What do you mean?"

"_You_ mean you mean humans. We mean aliens. Sentient life forms. And when I say life forms, I mean sentient life in any form. I once met this piece of lichen in the bogs of Gan-Sil, sentient talking lichen, I mean. He was quite the joker. Lots of jokes about hanging. Of course, I didn't really appreciate them at the time, because _I_ was hanging over a boiling toxic mud pit which the locals were about to drop me in after I broke some rule of theirs. It _might_ have been talking too much. Sorry, I tend to do that." The Relict smiled sheepishly at the other two, only slightly red in the face after her monologue.

"Must be a Time Lord thing," Rose joked.

The Doctor and the Relict shared a look before simultaneously breaking into opposite expressions: the Doctor frowned and turned his head away, and the Relict grinned and glanced at Rose. "The ones who weren't notoriously tight-lipped did tend to ramble on a bit, yes. Just be lucky you never had to attend a Council meeting. Imagine stiflingly formal, incredibly boring, and impossibly long-winded, all thrown into one. And about five hundred people with something to say in that very manner."

The two women shared a playful grimace.

"Why do you have to talk about them?" the Doctor snapped. "Why can't you just leave it alone?"

"Doctor-" the Relict shifted positions with Rose so that the two Time Lords could walk next to each other. "Look. Sometimes, one pokes a wound to ascertain its depth and level of severity, and sometimes a wound needs to be poked before it can heal properly. We each deal with our guilt and grief in our own ways. But if you're always letting it hang over you, you'll always be thinking about bad things rather than…"

"What, making fun of them, like you do?" he said harshly. The little group stopped its progress down the corridor.

"I didn't mean-"

"Don't you tell me you didn't mean it! It was pretty obvious that you did!"

The Relict moved back half a step, hurt. "Look, I know how you're feeling- no, don't interrupt me again, I really can't stand it- You're jealous because we're laughing while you're so miserable. Let me give you a tidbit of information that your numerous senses are obviously failing to pick up: I'm _not _happy! I don't know if either of us can ever be properly happy again! But if you'd just lighten up a bit, you might find that laughing actually does help! Got it

"Fine! Fantastic! Let's all be happy even though we don't mean it!"

"Better than ruining everybody else's moods because we don't want them to be able to feel better than us! That's just selfish, and from the rumours I've heard, the Doctor is not supposed to be selfish!"

"I'm not-" he spluttered. "Selfish? I never- how- _I'm_ being selfish?"

"Sort of, yeah." She mimicked his northern accent viciously.

"What am I supposed to do? Are you going to make me a little happy face mask?" he mocked.

"No," she said quietly. "Right about now, both of us are going to realize that this is very unpleasant for our human friend to listen to, and we'll change our behaviour accordingly."

The Doctor peered over the Relict's shoulder at Rose, who was standing, head down, fiddling with the zipper on her jacket, and had the grace to look embarrassed.

He cleared his throat uncomfortably. "Sorry."

The Relict studied her hands. "No, I shouldn't have… gone where I did. And I'll stop talking about… them… all the time. I guess I was just trying to make it seem like… well, like they were still alive, and I shouldn't be denying… well. I said I would stop. And I'm sorry, too."

"Um…" Rose stepped forwards tentatively. The two Time Lords turned to her and muttered 'sorry' again. "It's just… we're here, yeah, but what- what are all the… aliens doing here, on this… space ship?"

The Doctor pasted on a grin. "It's not a space ship, it's an observation deck," he said, pressing his sonic screwdriver to a button panel. "The great and the good are gathering to watch the planet burn."

"What for?"

"Fun."

They walked through a pair of sliding doors to a long, open room, the far wall of which was almost entirely window.

"Not really the great and the good," the Relict corrected disapprovingly. "More like the very rich."

"But- hold on. They did this once on News Round extra. The- the sun expanding. That takes hundreds of years."

"Millions," the Doctor answered. "But the planet's now the property of the National Trust. They've been keeping it preserved. See down there? Gravity satellites, holding back the sun."

"The planet looks the same as ever! I thought the continents shifted, and things."

"They did. And the Trust shifted 'em back. That's classic Earth. But, now the money's run out, nature takes over."

"How long has it got?"

He checked his watch. "'Bout half an hour. Then the planet gets roasted." He grinned at her.

"Is that why we're here? I mean, is that what you people do? Jump in at the last minute and save the Earth?"

The Relict resisted the urge to correct Rose on the laws of interference. "We're not saving it."

"Time's up," the Doctor agreed.

"But what about the people?" Rose protested.

"It's empty. They've all gone. No one left."

"Just me then."

"Who are you?" someone asked, and the three turned to see a blue-skinned person in golden robes.

"Oh! That's nice, thanks," the Doctor said cheerfully.

"But how did you get in? This is a maximum hospitality zone! The guests have disembarked! They're on their way any second now!"

"No, that's me!" the Doctor hurriedly assured. "Or rather, us. We're guests, look: I've got an invitation." He held up the psychic paper. "Look, there, you see, it's fine. You see? The Doctor, plus one. Sorry, two. I'm the Doctor, this is Rose Tyler, she's my plus one, and-"

"Their plus two couldn't make it today, unfortunately," the Relict said, stepping forward and holding up the same business card she had used to tell Rose and Jackie that she was Esther Pengrove. "I'm the Relict. I think you will find my invitation perfectly in order, as well. Is that all right?"

"Well. Obviously." The blue man looked rather taken aback. "Apologies, et cetera. If you're on board, we'd better start. Enjoy." He walked off.

The Doctor showed his paper to Rose. "The paper's slightly psychic. Shows them whatever I want them to see. Saves a lot of time. I suppose that's what you have, too?" he asked the Relict.

"Psychic ink, actually," she said. "Same principle, if a bit stronger. The paper's perfectly normal, see?"

She held it out to the Doctor, who laughed. "That's what you wrote?"

"It had to be _something_."

"What does it say?" Rose asked. "It just looks sort of blurry to me."

The Doctor turned to her as the Relict put it away. "It says, 'Congratulations, you are not as much of an imbecile as you seem'. Because to read the original message, you need a good bit of psychic training. It's just meant as a joke."

"Right… That man, he was blue."

"Yeah."

"Okay."

The blue man, now standing behind a glass podium, announced, "We have in attendance the Relict, the Doctor, and Rose Tyler. Thank you. All staff to their positions!"

A swarm of small blue people dressed in black suits and helmets hurried around the room, evidently getting in position. "Thank you, quick as we can, come along, come along! And now, might I introduce the next honoured guest: representing the Forest of Cheem, we have trees! Namely Jabe, Yut, and Koffa. There will be an exchange of gifts, representing peace. If you could keep the room circulating, thank you."

The Relict snorted; there were only nine people in the room at the moment.

"Next, from the solicitors Bolko and Bolko, we have the Moxx of Balhoun. And next, from financial family seven, we have the Adherence of the Repeated Meme." The Relict snorted again as the Doctor laughed.

The blue man kept introducing more guests as the room slowly filled up. The Relict now had her arm in her pocket up to the elbow, and Rose was staring at her bemusedly and wondering how deep the pocket really was.

"Ha!" The Relict said triumphantly as the trees from the Forest of Cheem approached, and pulled a cloth bag out of her pocket.

"The gift of peace," the first tree said. "I bring you cuttings of my grandfather." She gently handed one to the Doctor and one to the Relict.

"Thank you." the Doctor handed his to Rose, while the Relict held hers up, studying it carefully. "Yes, gifts. Um…" he patted his jacket, as though expecting to feel something suitable in the pockets. "I give you in return… air from my lungs." And he breathed on her.

"How… intimate," the tree said. The Relict guessed that she was the one called Jabe.

"There's more where that came from," the Doctor said with a grin.

"There- there is?" she stuttered.

The Relict stepped on the Doctor's foot and pushed forwards, pulling something out of her bag. "And I present to you an Areli flower, as a gesture of friendship between our species."

She carefully placed a small, metal flower bud in Jabe's hand. As the tree studied it, the bud shifted and unfurled, becoming a flower under their stunned gazes.

Rose and the trees gasped, and even the Doctor looked very surprised.

"I- I thank you," the tree said breathlessly. "What a beautiful gift!"

"Take care of it," the Relict cautioned.

"I will," Jabe answered. "Thank you." She gave a small bow, and they departed.

"An Areli flower?" the Doctor asked. "I've never heard of that. Who made it?"

The Relict closed her eyes and reached into the bag again. Her hand, when she pulled it out, was loosely fisted. "Areli."

"Who is Areli?"

"A craftswoman. She started making them a long time ago, on the most beautiful planet on the universe. The first one was a gift for someone… special. That wasn't the only one she made, not by a long shot. And they weren't all flowers, either…"

Her hand unfolded, revealing a tiny, metal bird, no longer than three inches from beak to tail. It was perfect in every detail, with individual feathers connected like chain mail and jewelled eyes that sparkled a bright sapphire.

As they watched, the little bird shifted, ruffling its wings and letting out a melodic, bell-like whistle. Even the Doctor gasped this time as the Areli bird took flight, circling once around the trio and then landing back in the Relict's outstretched palm. She stroked the bird's back with one finger, an uncharacteristically soft smile on her face.

"Does she still make them?" the Doctor asked.

The Relict looked up, face hardening back to her usual closed expression. "No."

"What happened?" Rose asked softly.

The bird disappeared into the bag again as the Relict hesitated. "She was… lost. Lost, or dead… it's sort of a grey area. But she doesn't make them anymore."

The Doctor and Rose looked away as the steward announced, "The sponsor of the main event, please welcome the Face of Boe!" and a giant face in a glass tank rolled in.

"The Moxx of Balhoun," the Doctor greeted.

"My felicitation upon this historical happenstance," the Moxx said in a high, squeaky voice. "I bring you the gift of bodily salvias." He spit very accurately, hitting Rose in the face, while the Relict put the back of her hand up just in time to avoid the same thing.

"Thank you very much," the Doctor answered. "Ah, the Adherence of the Repeated Meme! I bring you air from my lungs."

"A gift of peace, in all good faith." one of the Memes held out a hand, a silver plastic ball proffered in it.

"I present you with an Areli flower, the Relict said, handing it to them. This time, the metal bud remained tightly closed.

"A gift of peace, in all good faith," the Repeated Meme repeated.

"Thank you."

"And last, our very special guest," the steward proclaimed. "Ladies and gentlemen, trees, and multiforms, consider the Earth below. In memory of this dying world, we call forth the last human. The lady Cassandra O'Brian dot delta seventeen."

"Oh, now don't stare," Cassandra O'Brian, a piece of skin on a frame, said. "It's shocking, isn't it? I've had my chin completely taken away, and look at the difference! Look how thin I am. Thin and dainty. I don't look a day over two thousand." Silence in the room. "Moisturize me, moisturize me," she said out of the corner of her mouth at the two sterile-suited attendants standing near her.

"Who does she think she is? I don't look a day over two thousand, either, and I'm in much better shape than she is!" the Relict whispered to the Doctor and Rose.

"You're over two thousand?" the Doctor asked, mildly surprised, as Rose gaped.

"Two thousand, three hundred and fifty-six, If I've been counting correctly."

"What regeneration are you on?"

"Ten, but still doing a good bit better than you in that respect, I might point out," she said, grinning slightly.

"You're over… two thousand…" Rose said slowly. "As in, two thousand years."

"Yep," the Relict replied, popping the 'p' and hooking her thumbs in her pockets.

Rose rubbed her forehead as though she was getting a headache, her eyebrows almost invisible due to their height on her forehead. "Great. That's just…" she moved away, turning her attention back to 'the last human'.

"Truly," Cassandra continued. "I am the last human. My father was a Texan, and my mother was from the Arctic desert." Rose sidled closer. "They were born on the Earth, and they were the last to be buried in its soil. I have come to honour them, and say… goodbye." Her voice was sad, and she seemed to be trying to mirror the emotion on her face, but stretched as tightly as she was, it wasn't much of a success. "Oh, no tears. No tears! I'm sorry.

"But behold: I bring gifts form Earth itself: the last remaining ostrich egg. Legend says it had a wingspan of fifty feet, and blew fire from its nostrils. Or was that my third husband? Oh no. Oh, don't laugh. I'll get laughter lines."

The Doctor was smiling, but the Relict had a look of disgust, and possibly contempt, on her face. "Horrific," she said quietly. "Just when you're starting to think that the human race isn't so bad, they come along and do something absolutely repulsive again."

"They're not that bad," the Doctor defended. "That's only one person, out of millions."

"And who developed the technology? Who had the idea in the first place? Who decided to _accept_ the technology? They did! Disgusting."

"If you judge a race by the bits that aren't perfect, you'll never pay attention to the bits that are absolutely amazing!" he hissed.

"I'm not judging every human by that, but my net opinion of the human race has just dipped significantly."

"I'll soon find a way to fix that."

"You're the Doctor. You'd better." They shared a grin.

"And here, another rarity. According to the archives, this was called an _iPod_." The object in question was, in fact, a jukebox. "It stores classical music from humanity's greatest composers. Play on!"

A song started playing, and the Relict looked at the Doctor in confusion.  
"That was classical music? Forgive me if my Earth history is wrong, but I wasn't aware of that."

"Your history's fine," the Doctor answered, bobbing in time with the beat.

"Refreshments will now be served," the steward said. "Earth death in thirty minutes."

The Relict, putting her bag back in her pocket, slipped away towards the door, but the steward stopped her.

"Excuse me, Madam Relict," he began, "but you are in possession of an unauthorized piece of technology."

"That's _Lady_ Relict to you, and what of it?"

He gave a small bow. "My apologies, Lady Relict. I am afraid I have to ask you to place it in storage for the remainder of your stay on Platform One."

She scowled, crossing her arms. "No."

"It is clearly stated in the rule book that unauthorized technology may not be used during the duration of your stay here. Please understand that because it could pose a risk to the Platform, we cannot allow it to remain in your possession."

She drew herself up to her not-unremarkable full height, glaring. "Please understand that my little piece of technology will pose a much greater threat to the platform if I _do_ remove it. You don't even know what it is! That's why you're so afraid of it. For all you know, it could be a bomb, a teleport, mind control software- as if I'd need software for that if I wanted to- or, it could be something as simple as life support."

The Relict extended her arm and pulled back the coat sleeve, showing him a bracelet. It was about half an inch wide, though not solid; made of gold and set mostly with rounded blue stones, though the main stone, set a bit higher than the others, was clear, sparkling white and immaculately polished.

"If I take this off my wrist, the entire platform will be gone in sixty seconds. Possibly ninety, but I think the point still stands. I suppose it technically is a bomb, in that respect. Or rather, I am, if I take it off. So!" She grinned, falsely cheerful, and slid her fingers around the bracelet. "Do you still want me to take it off?"

The steward was quick to back away, as though that would help him. "No, no, no, my lady. No need for that. I apologize for the inconvenience."

He turned and hurried off, probably trying to put as much distance between them as possible.

The Relict smiled smugly, tugging her sleeve back down.

"So what _is_ your bracelet?"

She whirled, arms coming up into a defensive stance and dropping again when she saw the Doctor. "Don't do that!"

"Sorry. So, what-"

"Rose, where are you going?" the Relict asked with the air of a suspicious parent.

"I- I'm just-"

"Culture shock, isn't it?" She smiled sympathetically. "Don't get lost."

"So-" the Doctor began again.

"Doctor?" the two turned again to see Jabe, holding a small, white device in her hands. A beam of green light shot briefly out of the device and it tweeted like a bird. Jabe smiled. "Thank you."

"A _photograph_?" the Relict looked bemused. "Why would anyone want a photograph of us?"

The Doctor let out a bark of laughter but didn't say anything, just buried his hands deep in his pockets and gave her a searching look.

"Why should I tell you?" she asked quietly.

He feigned innocence. "I didn't ask you anything. Was there… something you wanted to share?"

Now the Relict gave him a look. "You did ask. You _are_ asking. Your mind's just screaming with a question. Even if I told you it was a sensitive subject, you probably wouldn't back off."

"So wouldn't it be easier to just tell me?"

"Maybe if I felt like it." She turned away and, a second later, put her mental shields back up.

The Doctor caught her arm. "Hey! Would you mind terribly not doing that? It's only-" his head twitched and he grimaced, lowering his voice as though it pained him to admit. "-It's too quiet. Alone. It's all empty, and I…" he trailed off with a small shudder.

"Will you leave off asking about my bracelet?"

"Yeah."

She took her shields back down and turned back to him. "I don't like it either, you know," she admitted, then turned, put her own hands in her pockets, and shrugged. "Before… I never thought there could be such a thing as too quiet."

There was a tense, awkward pause, full of unspoken regrets, until the public address system clicked on:

'_Would the owner of the blue box in private gallery fifteen please report to the steward's office immediately. Guests are reminded that the use of teleportation devices is strictly forbidden, under peace treaty five point four slash cup slash sixteen. Thank you.'_

'_Earth death in twenty-five minutes. Earth death in twenty-five minutes.'_

"Do you suppose we should find out where Rose wandered off to?" the Relict suggested.

"Suppose we should," the Doctor agreed. "Let's try… this way."

They started off down the passageway he had pointed out. "You know, instead of just wandering, you _could_ always scan for her vital signs."

He crossed his arms. "You do it, if you're so clever."

She pulled a long, slim, wand-like object out of her pocket and held it up. "I don't know if it's working right now. I haven't had the opportunity to fix it." She gave it a wave, as though actually expecting it to do magic.

The Doctor couldn't help but snigger. "What is that supposed to be, exactly?"

"Asks the man with the sonic _screwdriver_ of all things! It's a conductor's baton. Sonic or laser, depending on the hand with which I use it. I just call it my wand, though. And… presto!"

She swooped it gracefully through the air, using her right hand. "Rose is… that way, but I think you'll find something of interest just around this next corner." She smirked.

He hurried forwards. "Oi now! Careful with that," he said upon spotting the TARDIS. "Park it properly. No scratches."

One of the child-sized blue people approached and handed him a ticket, which the Relict promptly read over his shoulder. "'Have a nice day'! How sweet! You know, I was expecting something along the lines of 'collect for two thousand credits', but to each their own." He chuckled, and she twirled the… wand in her hand, aiming it at a door. "That door."

"Rose? Are you in there?" The door slid open, revealing the viewing platform they had landed the TARDIS in, though it was now, of course, sans TARDIS. "Hiya. What do you think, then?"

"Great! Yeah, it's… fine. Once you get past the slightly psychic paper."

"She's having a bit of trouble settling in," the Relict filled in, sitting between them. When they both looked askance at her, she spread her hands. "Just observing." She turned to Rose. "Next time you are trying to hide your true feelings, take some time to answer, keep your voice at its normal pitch, and don't make jokes. And your pupils are dilated."

Rose shrugged. "They're just so… alien." The Doctor and the Relict just looked at her. "The aliens… are so alien. You look at 'em, and they're alien."

"Good thing I didn't take you to the Deep South," the Doctor joked, straight faced.

"Where are you from?" she asked out of the blue.

He turned his gaze away from her and the Relict bit her lip. "All over the place," he answered lightly.

"They all speak English."

"No. You just hear English. It's a gift of the TARDIS: a telepathic field. Gets inside your brain, translates."

"It's inside my brain?"

"Well, in a good way."

"Your machine gets inside my head. It gets inside and it changes my mind and you didn't even ask?" She turned to the Relict. "Doesn't that bother _you_ at all?"

"Doesn't happen for me. I speak all of those languages. I don't need it. He just didn't think about it that way, Rose. It's something we grew up with. I mean, you don't question that you can speak to people from miles away through a device that fits into your hand, but to an undeveloped civilization or someone from the nineteenth century, that would seem strange and unbelievable and maybe like witchcraft."

Rose leaned around the Relict, pointing angrily at the Doctor. "You were just too busy thinking up cheap shots about the Deep South! Who are you, then, Doctor?" he sat up, leaning forward and frowning. "Or you, Relict? You grew up with this sort of thing! What are you called, what sort of aliens are you?"

"I'm just the Doctor," he said. "And she's just the Relict. That's it."

"Well it's not as if you'd know where it is!" he said, laughing.

"Where are you _from_?"

"What does it matter?!"

"Guys…" the Relict started.

"Tell me who you are!" Rose demanded.

"This is who I am! Right here, right now, alright? All that counts is here and now, and this is me!" the Doctor shouted.

"Yeah, and I'm here too, 'cause you brought me here, so just tell me!"

The Doctor stood up and walked down the steps to the window.

"I'm sorry," the Relict whispered to Rose. "He's not-"

"Oh, yeah, take her side!" the Doctor said savagely. "Let's all gang up against the Doctor! Fifty points to the person that can make him the angriest! Come on, then! What have you got to throw at me now?"

The Relict stood up and slowly descended the stairs, each step taking her closer to him. "_Don't_ test me," she said quietly. "I could make you _so_ angry. You just assume that I know nothing about you, because you forget. You forget that I am a Time Lord. I could turn your world upside down; make you so angry and so guilty if I wanted to. It would only take a few words. Let's say… four. No, three. Three words, Doctor. So don't _test_ me."

"You're bluffing," the Doctor said, tone scornful. "You might be a Time Lord, but there's still no way you'd know that much."

"Rose," the Relict said lightly, beckoning without taking her eyes off the Doctor. "Come here."

The human girl walked down tentatively, stopping next to the Relict.

"Let me tell you the story of the Doctor." She leaned forwards and, in the space of a few heartbeats, whispered something to Rose.

"Now, I know those three words don't really mean anything to _you_. But, to the Doctor… well." She smirked.

"Tell me," he said.

"No."

"Rose, tell me."

The Relict put a finger to her lips, then turned and placed her fingers on Rose's temples, concentrating briefly. When she dropped her hands, the human blinked.

"What did you just do?" Rose asked.

"Dangerous words. I… _exterminated_ them from your memory."

The Doctor looked at the Relict gravely, suspiciously.

"_You_ messed with my mind without asking now, too?" asked Rose angrily. "Who do you think you are, anyway?!"

"Don't go _storming_ off or anything. At least I didn't mean you any harm."

"Stop it," the Doctor hissed.

The other Time Lord turned to him, innocent expression on her face. "Stop what?"

"You know what you're doing! Stop it with your stupid little word games!"

"I thought you _wanted_ to know. That's what you said, wasn't it? It wasn't that long ago, only about a-"

"Shut up!" The Relict actually drew back a step. "Okay, I understand! I won't take you for granted, or anything! Just _don't say that word_."

"Point taken, I hope?" the Relict held out her hand and the Doctor grudgingly shook it.

"Point taken."

Rose was looking between the two in confusion.

'_Earth death in twenty minutes.'_

"Er, well, as my mate Shareen says, 'don't argue with the designated driver'," Rose said nervously, trying to lighten the mood. She pulled out her phone and held it up. "It's not like you could call for a taxi. There's no signal. We're out of range. Just a bit."

"Tell you what," the Doctor said quietly, taking the phone. "With a little bit of jiggery-pokery-"

"Is that a technical term, 'jiggery pokery'?

"Actually, it has been used as such," the Relict said. "It first entered the Oxford English Dictionary on the first of April, 2945 so, of course, nobody was sure whether or not it was a joke… they never took it out. The definition was, 'The act of doing something related to technology and being unable or unwilling to explain it.'"

"You're kidding," Rose accused with a grin.

"Not a bit. I don't get my historical facts wrong. And anyway, I came first in jiggery-pokery at school, so I should know."

The Doctor handed the phone back to Rose. "There you go." He crossed his arms and assumed a far-too-self-satisfied expression as she turned on the phone and pressed the call button.

The Relict retreated to sit on the steps again as Rose spoke to her mother and the Doctor continued looking smug. "Universal coverage," she muttered. "You know that counts as a long distance call?"

The Doctor winced briefly and raised his eyebrows at Rose as she hung up. "You think that's amazing, but you won't want to see the bill."

"That was five billion years ago," the human said, sounding stunned. "So- she's dead now. Five billion years later, and my mum's dead."

"Bundle of laughs, you are," the Doctor remarked.

The Relict reclined where she sat. "As though that would help, Doctor! Rose, as time travellers, we can't look at time from a strictly linear viewpoint, but rather from a viewpoint that is linear only to our lives. Sometimes we have to take a step back from that view, but in this case what really matters is that your mother is alive _for you_, and you will get to see her again at a relative point in your mutual timelines, hopefully one that matches up. The timeline between or interconnecting you two is roughly and directionally linear, no matter what time you travel to. Of course, if you happened to travel forwards in Jackie's timeline to a point at which she claimed not to have seen you since the time you left, you would have to continue there rather than cross your own timeline and create a paradox by travelling back in Jackie's time stream and meeting her again during the period in which she had previously claimed not to have seen you, which could rip the entire universe apart. Got it?"

Rose started to shake her head, saw the Relict drawing breath as though for another monologue, and quickly changed the motion to a nod. "Yep," she lied. "That all made perfect sense."

The Time Lord looked briefly gratified, and then her face fell. "You're just saying that, aren't you?" It was more a statement than a question, and Rose didn't bother nodding. "And here I thought I'd actually found a human who understood the mechanics of time. I don't suppose your species is even capable of that yet." She sighed.

"Oi!" the Doctor butted in. "They're a very intelligent race, and-" At that point in his speech, the platform shook violently and the three exchanged looks. "That's not supposed to happen."

"_Honoured guests may be reassured that gravity pockets may cause slight turbulence, thanking you,"_ The PA system announced.

The Doctor and the Relict shared a look. "That wasn't a gravity pocket," they said simultaneously, and the three hurried back to the main observation deck.

"I know gravity pockets and they don't feel like that," the Doctor said, running his finger down a small screen next to the door. "What do you think, Jabe?" he asked as the tree came up behind them. "Listen to the engines; they've pitched up about…"

"Thirty hertz," the Relict supplied.

"Yeah. Is that dodgy or what?"

"It's the sound of metal; it doesn't make any sense to me," she answered.

The Relict frowned, staring into the space beyond the tree's shoulder. "It speaks to me," she said quietly, then snapped her gaze back to the Doctor. "The engines are being overworked. If we were moving, it would not be a problem, but if we remain stationary and the engines stay at their current rate, they are liable to overheat, in which case the entire ship will explode."

"I always travel with an optimist," the Doctor said sarcastically. "Where's the engine room?"

"I don't know. But the maintenance duct is just behind our guest suite; I could show you… and your… wife?" She looked at the Relict. Rose scowled.

"Ah, no. I… don't really go for that sort of thing," the Relict answered quickly.

"Then…" Jabe pointed between the Doctor and Rose.

"Oh, she's not my wife," the Doctor said.

"Partner?"

"No."

"Concubine?"

"Nope."

"Prostitute?"

The Relict made sort of a strangled coughing sound, hand over her mouth.

"Whatever I am, it must be invisible; do you mind?" Rose snapped. "Tell you what, you three go and… pollinate; I'm gonna catch up with the family. Quick word with Michael Jackson."

She pointed towards an alien with thick black hair and walked off in his direction.

The Doctor offered his arm to Jabe. "I'm all yours."

"And I want you home by midnight!" Rose called after him.

The Relict stuffed her hands in her pockets and looked back and forth between Rose and the door before hurrying towards the latter.

* * *

**Personally, I enjoyed writing this chapter. I hope anyone reading enjoyed it as well, and I hope at least part of it piqued your interest. There will be more about some of the things I mentioned here in later chapters, in case you _were_ interested and happened to want to know.**


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